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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. ball — a dance
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. wind — moving air
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. rock — music
  10. bass — the fish
  11. prune — to trim
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. bass — low music
  14. mark — a grade
  15. rock — a stone
  16. mark — a trace
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. prune — to trim
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. wind — moving air
  24. prune — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com